Fire fighters need quick and reliable access to water to extinguish fires. Conventional fire hydrants suffer from the disadvantage that the caps covering the outlet ports of the hydrant often are difficult to remove due to, for example, corrosion or damaged threads. If a cap cannot be removed quickly, i.e., in less than about one minute, then fire fighters at the nozzle end of the hose can be trapped near the fire without water. In addition, if fire fighters must struggle to remove a cap from a hydrant, then they are subject to injuries such as strained backs and broken fingers.
Conventional fire hydrants also suffer from the disadvantage that they are prone to vandalism and unauthorized operation. Particularly in urban areas, vandals have been known to open hydrants by unscrewing one of the caps and to place objects such as bottles and rags in the hydrant. If the object is not removed from the hydrant when a hose is connected thereto, then it can pass out of the hydrant through the hose and jam the pumps of a fire engine. When the pumps jam, the flow of water to the fire fighters is interrupted, which places the fire fighters in a dangerous situation.
Vandals and other unauthorized persons also have been known to operate fire hydrants. Unauthorized operation is undesirable because it often reduces water pressure below the pressure required for effectively delivering water to fires. Such reduced water pressure creates a dangerous condition for fire fighters and the surrounding community. Unauthorized operation also can cause water pressure to build up within the hydrant. This creates a dangerous condition because the increased water pressure within the hydrant cannot be detected by examining the outside of the hydrant. When such a hydrant is opened, the unexpected surge of water rushing from the hydrant may injure the person opening the hydrant or other persons near the hydrant.
Despite longstanding efforts to develop a tamperproof fire hydrant, unauthorized access to and operation of fire hydrants remains a significant problem, particularly in urban areas. Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a security device for preventing unauthorized access to and operation of fire hydrants.
Another object of the invention is to provide a system for preventing unauthorized access to and operation of fire hydrants.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.